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DAR Reviews: Scarface's Deeply Rooted Album

Brad Jordan is a staple. No matter how you spin it, which album you bring up or what year you analyze, the name Scarface is important. In 2008, Scarface released Emeritus, his highly underrated and supposed last project. Instead here we are, 7 years later with the independent release of Deeply Rooted. At this point, Scarface could release an album of him reading a book and listeners would flock to it; that’s how important he is. Instead, we find another well executed album that provides life lessons, advice and Face’s notably intricate story telling.

Rightfully titled, Deeply Rooted provides an organic look into where Scarface came from and what he went through while still focusing on now, as well as on maturity and growth. It’s no secret that at 44, Face has taken his fair share of losses and lived in every part of the spectrum. One of the consistent themes to Scarface's lyricism is the presence of demons. The realities of internal struggles, cognitive dissonance and balancing the fragility of the human experience are ever present on Deeply Rooted, specifically on “God”. There is no another artist that hangs their ugly truths in the universe for everyone to see like Scarface does. To be honest, it's one of the reasons he is so revered. From the production to the content, Deeply Rooted is hauntingly in tune with life and the truths we too often sweep under the rug and fill with dance or trap tracks.

“I’m human / That’s my best excuse / In fact my only one.”

There aren’t any frills on Deeply Rooted. Even the soulful and emotional features by John Legend, Cee Lo, Avant and Jack Freeman are serene and beautifully simplistic. Not to mention, Scarface put Nas, Rick Ross and Z-Ro on a track together (“Do What I Do”) and it’s just as flawless as it is true to his deep southern roots, with an East Coast and Floridian artist two stepping up and down the track. Scarface doesn’t reach for attention by assimilating his style to “industry standards”, and he never has. The entire album showcases how authenticity is not only important, it is appreciated. Between “Fuck You” featuring Z-Ro, and “You” featuring Cee-Lo, the subject matter is well rounded and a direct reflection of everything we have grown to love about Scarface’s unrelenting persona. “Steer”, “Keep It Movin’”, “Voices” and “All Bad” stir up every emotion and leave listeners in a state of self-reflection while teetering between overwhelming doubt, positive reinforcement and resonant bravado. Realistically, the album could have done without “No Problems”, but the quality of the rest of the album more than makes up for it, plus we can pretend it didn’t happen, right?

Scarface’s voice alone on any track by any artist garners attention. His name will forever be enshrined in music, and rightfully so. Deeply Rooted is another example of what being really, really good at something sounds like. Every project he ever makes will be compared to The Diary or The Fix, which is honestly an injustice to his progression as an artist, but at the same time, every project stands its ground even in comparison. Whether it is 1994 or 2015, Brad Jordan is really, really good at making music, and more than that he is really good at conveying a story and eliciting emotion. As is true in history, the storytellers are some of the most important people in existence and Scarface is one of the best, definitely the truest when it comes to conveying stories. Deeply Rooted is nothing if it isn’t authentic, and it sounds damn good.